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Iran jails women for flouting Islamic dress code
Three young Iranian women have been jailed for flouting the country`s Islamic dress code and attending a private party in Tehran, a local newspaper said.
Three young Iranian women have been jailed for flouting the country's Islamic dress code and attending a private party in Tehran, a local newspaper said.
Mingling with the opposite sex, dancing with non-family members of the opposite sex and wearing dress deemed un-Islamic are illegal in Iran and usually punishable by fines or lashes. Police arrested the three women, aged between 15 and 17, as they were returning home from a party on Sunday.
Iranian women are required by law to cover their bodies completely. Many wear the traditional chador, a loose black garment that leaves only the face exposed. ''Whoever breaks Islamic law or society's common law will be confronted,'' the newspaper yesterday quoted the trial's judge as saying.
''These girls broke the law by attending a depraved party, having contacts with unrelated men and wearing un-Islamic dress,'' he added.
The newspaper did not say how long the teenagers' prison sentences were. The Tehran judiciary formed a special unit to stamp out illegal revelry after more than 300 people were arrested at New Year's eve parties in the city last year.
Although the social reforms of moderate President Mohammad Khatami, elected with the overwhelming support of women in 1997, have somewhat eased social restrictions, many women still feel burdened by their gender.
Bureau Report
Mingling with the opposite sex, dancing with non-family members of the opposite sex and wearing dress deemed un-Islamic are illegal in Iran and usually punishable by fines or lashes. Police arrested the three women, aged between 15 and 17, as they were returning home from a party on Sunday.
Iranian women are required by law to cover their bodies completely. Many wear the traditional chador, a loose black garment that leaves only the face exposed. ''Whoever breaks Islamic law or society's common law will be confronted,'' the newspaper yesterday quoted the trial's judge as saying.
''These girls broke the law by attending a depraved party, having contacts with unrelated men and wearing un-Islamic dress,'' he added.
The newspaper did not say how long the teenagers' prison sentences were. The Tehran judiciary formed a special unit to stamp out illegal revelry after more than 300 people were arrested at New Year's eve parties in the city last year.
Although the social reforms of moderate President Mohammad Khatami, elected with the overwhelming support of women in 1997, have somewhat eased social restrictions, many women still feel burdened by their gender.
Bureau Report